New Delhi, August 8
While Sri Lanka has denied China permission for its spy ship to dock at Hambantota, it has allowed Pakistani guided missile frigate PNS Taimur to make a port call at Colombo while on its way to join the Pakistan Navy in Karachi.
The Pakistani warship was understood to have been denied permission to dock at Chattogram port as Dhaka said August was month of mourning for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, whose father was assassinated by Pakistan-backed radical Islamist forces in 1975.
Bangladesh may not have wanted to ruffle feathers in Delhi as Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to make a trip to India in the first week of September. The operationalisation of several joint projects built with Indian assistance is crucial for Hasina’s re-election bid in the upcoming Parliamentary elections.
The Pakistan war vessel is coming from China where it was built and had made its first port of call at Malaysia. The ship is expected to dock at Colombo port from August 12 to 15.
Meanwhile
